Protest planned following firefighter’s rehiring

June 10, 2013

John Ryan Mason

A group of San Luis Obispo residents are planning a peaceful protest on Monday afternoon to support Jory Brigham and to voice disapproval of the city’s controversial decision to reinstate John Ryan Mason to the SLO Fire Department.

On June 5, SLO Fire Chief Charlie Hines agreed to reinstate Mason after firing the firefighter in November because of his role in a barroom brawl.

In June 2011, Mason allegedly beat Brigham unconscious in a nightclub bathroom after an eight-month rift stemming from claims the firefighter was having an affair with a local policeman’s wife. Mason had no injuries while Brigham had 17 fractures in his face. Mason’s trial concluded with a hung jury leaning eight to four in his favor, and the District Attorney’s Office chose not to retry the case.

Hines’ decision to rehire Mason was supported by several city officials including Christine Dietrick, the city attorney.

The protesters are asking anyone who would like to participate in the protest to meet them at the corner of Palm and Osos streets today, June 10, at 4:15 p.m.

“Participating in this process allows you to elicit change, while representing the community at large who believes our public servants need to be held to a higher standard,” Lealah Broyles said in an email.

Bob…..I’m going to try to put this in the simplest terms possible for you: Just because someone is a paramedic, does not mean they have a duty to render aid when OFF DUTY to any and every injured person they encounter. If that were expected of every paramedic in the world, they would need to be paid 24 hours a day, seven days a week, never be allowed to have a drink of alcohol and would have to carry around their medical equipment on their backs.
You are OUT OF YOUR MIND if you believe anyone who is attacked has an obligation to render aid to their attacker. For example, if there is a woman paramedic who gets raped walking home one night and she injures her attacker while fighting him off, what you are saying is that she would be obligated and you would expect her to render aid to her rapist. You are crazy!

Hey slojo you think that maybe cop’s, fireman should be randomly tested for drugs? Look at his mug shot! Looks like he’s spun out! It took 5 days to arrest him??? REALLY!!! If that would have been you and me we would have been in JAIL that night!!! Something STINKS with all the shit that happens in SLO town, a cleaning of house is in order, no one wants to buck the good old boy system so lets vote out the FOOLS that let all of the corruption continue !!!

Sure, I wouldn’t be opposed to random drug testing for cops and firemen. Hell, I wouldn’t be opposed to random drug testing everyone for that matter.
Ryan was not on drugs and does not do drugs. If you knew Ryan you would know he is very healthy and is always on some healthy diet kick. Sure, he drinks socially but drugs, not a chance.
If you had been at the trial, like I was everyday, you would know why the cops didn’t arrest him for 5 days. It had nothing to do with Ryan!!! I think the transcripts are public record if you want to educate yourself or would you prefer to just perpetuate the gossip and lies and remain ignorant?

Well, its after 4:15. I wonder if the protesters called themselves “The Jory Brigham People’s Front” or “The People’s Front of Jory Brigham” and wore sack cloth, threw ashes on themselves, beat their breasts and knashed their teeth? Any eyewitness accounts Brother Ted?

We’re having a peaceful protest to denounce the hiring of Mr. Mason. Has to be one of the dumbest things I’ve heard of… With any luck the fireman will come by and cool all of you off with the water cannon. What this guy does off duty is his business and shouldn’t have anything to do with his professional life. We pay him for his service to help the public when there in need and to put fires out, as far as im concerned he has and will continue to do that. And to Jory go practice how to fall down that way next time you won’t get injured as bad when you hit the floor.

OF course it is, I got one question for you? Why did it take 5 days to arrest this guy??? Maybe cus he was on Crystal Meth??? Look at the fools mugshot! SLO Town is as corrupt as they get and I cant wait til the Hammer comes down on all the so called elected (NON) leaders ruining this town! Thank God for Karen and everyone at CCN for being the ONLY REAL news in this county! I guess the civil suite is filled. I hope this so called Firelighter gets REAMED!!!

If you were at the trial everyday like I was, you would know why it was five days before he was arrested. Go read the transcripts and you won’t have to ask dumb questions.
Crystal Meth? That is really funny. Even Jory would tell you that Ryan does not do drugs.

I can buy into the argument that he was not on Meth and don’t think that a mugshot is any basis for making such a judgment. However, he does seem to have a problem with temper control. If that was due to alcohol consumption, he needs to stop drinking. If it was due to something like steroids (the “acceptable” illegal drug for many “fitness nuts”), he needs to re-evaluate the cost-benefit trade-off for using that.

What is the deal with you! Why don’t you just tell us how you feel with out bring the Lord into it!
Ryan is a punk no matter what. Thank goodness I am not a SLO firefighter. I would feel so betrayed
by my Chief. Who, by the why has been here for a year maybe. Ever since Ken Hampian left,
this city has taken a different direction. DOWN HILL!

By bringing the Hebrew-Christian God’s bible into the discussion, it gives more credence to discussing the topic at hand, in the same way as the Christian refers to the bible in disparaging abortion, gays, woman’s rights, and basically anyone that is not of their faith.

In other words, what’s good for the goose, is good for the gander, praise!

Go ask the firefighters how they feel. Some real feedback might actually bring some legitimacy to the discussion. Who would you want on a call to save a loved on? A rookie medic or someone with an impeccable service record. The argument that he would go off because he is having a bad day is extremely flimsy.

I don’t know that any of them who feel that Mason stepped too far over the line to be allowed back would dare to speak our given the vehemence of his defenders.

But it is irrelevant how they “feel” anyway. It is not his competence as a medic that is being attacked here. It is his character as a paid representative of the City of SLO. You may think otherwise, but public safety employees get WELL rewarded for their efforts by the standards of many. The risks they take are matched or exceeded by many other occupations (e.g. fishermen, roofers) as is the unpleasantness of the situations they sometimes face.

Still, I would not object to the high compensation IF they maintain high standards of personal behavior. While Mason’s offense of decency occurred off the job and may have been provoked, it is still too extreme to tolerate for someone who is getting paid for having high standards.

Let him put his skills to work in the private sector working as an EMT for an ambulance company or some similar job if he wants to continue in that line of work. Or is the drop in pay associated with that too extreme to contemplate?

Fire Chief Charlie will be swimming in the sulfur lakes of fire in Hell, praise God’s loving and forgiving ways!

“But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, AND ALL LIARS, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.” (Revelation 21:8)

Thank the Hebrew-Christian God that Ryans wife didn’t come to the rescue of her husband in trying to break up the outright brutal and senseless beating of Jory Brigham, and by grabbing Rory’s private parts. If she did, then Ryan would have had to show his wife no mercy by cutting her hand off!

“If two men are fighting and the wife of one of them comes to rescue her husband from his assailant, and she reaches out and seizes him by his private parts, you shall cut off her hand. Show her no pity.” (Deuteronomy 25:11-12)

Jesus, in spirit, will be at this protest today counting the days upon Ryan’s demise where he will face Jesus upon Judgment Day. This is when our Savior will pull the lever to the trap doors of Hell where Ryan will take the one-way E ticket ride to the burning sulfur lakes, praise Jesus’ revengeful ways!

A lot of blind comments going on here regarding Jory as the saint and Mason as the bully. Problem is, and is in most cases, the vast majority posting here on know what has been put in print and on the news. Second problem, the news has only been given information what can be shared in a criminal case – which by in large prevents any information that may make the victim look bad. I think most people would be shocked by what was not allowed in the criminal case – but would come to the forefront in a civil case. You have to believe Jory is praying this does not go to trial (civil) because his status as the victim will be viewed in a completely different light. Now I do not know the full story, but the fact that he is suing Mason’s wife is ridiculous. Even Jory’s own wife knew Jory was going to get into some trouble that night – go check the testimony. Why doesn’t Jory sue his own wife for not stopping the events of the night. He is also suing an establishment that employs a lot of local people – insurance grab – gotta love those people. So when you see that Jory got in a fight earlier in the night, was dogging Mason all day and night and was the one who followed Mason into bathroom you may start to see things in a different light. There is a reason 8 out of 12 jurors acquitted Mason. Lastly, it is really a shame to see the hate that people post on these sites – and most of it is completely based on off an article and not intimate knowledge of the situation. It is one thing to have an opinion on something but the venom being spewed here is off the charts. Be proud of yourself.

Skippy…you are right on. If this goes to a trial, Jory will be exposed for what he is and a lot of things that the Mason’s have kept their mouth shut about will come out. Through all of this, Ryan and Kendra have bitten their tongue about so many things about Jory, his wife Alison, Brian Villa and his wife, things that would ruin their lives. I hope it ALL comes out. Be careful what you wish for Jory.

I for one do believe that Jory is any sort of saint; as to Ryan being a bully, actions speak louder than words. There may be a valid reason for Ryan to fight Jory; for all I know, Jory may have even started the fight. All of that said, Ryan had no reason to leave Jory knocked out on the floor of a bathroom, bleeding with fractured facial bones. The real “sin” here is that a professional firefighter/medic left a person who definitely needed medical attention alone to bleed. NOTHING any one who supports John Ryan Mason and his viewpoint can diminish the veracity of what the result to Jory was, nothing can explain away why Mason left the scene of the “incident”.
And by the way, 8 of 12 jurors voting to acquit does not mean Mason was found “not guilty”; it was a hung jury- he is not “innocent” in any way, shape or form.

Skippy wouldn’t be as stupid as Jory was and stalk someone all night, follow them into the bathroom to get in their face then attack them. But if Skippy did, yes, you should defend yourself and if that entails throwing some punches, do it.

Deanwormer, I think you’re describing the average, common bar fight, something that happens most weekend evenings in America. It doesn’t stand to reason for two hostile people to stay around each other after one has been knocked down, subsequent to a mutual struggle and mutual verbal abuse. Most people flee to end the fighting. The only differentiation here is that one of the participants had a set of skills that the average non-medical person doesn’t have. And he’s being criticized for leaving the scene without calling 911 at least. Well, it doesn’t take a special set of skills to do that. So with that in mind, what differentiates the fireman with the average person who walks away from a fight, leaving the other person on the floor? I believe it takes a bit of time for all that bruising to show up, so I doubt Jory looked like the photos we all see now directly after the fight. With the civil suit having been filed, I think even if he had stayed and rendered aid, Jory would be screaming some sort of medical malpractice claim, or he would have been screaming at the criminal trial that the fireman must have purposefully messed him up some more, and the police and DA would have added some sort of aggravated type of enhancement. It sounds like a catch 22.